For many years children have tested their manipulative skills using a stick game marketed under the name "Devil Stick" which comprises a main stick having a pair of pompons at either end and which is juggled in the air using a pair of hand sticks held by the player. The pompons lend weight to the main stick as well as rendering it more attractive but the main stick is manipulated at its center of gravity, generally equidistant between the two pompons. Whilst the "Devil Stick" can be tossed into the air and caught by the hand sticks, this requires a degree of skill which is only acquired after long practice and is which is not within the capability of young children.
French patent number 1 601 665 (Abrard) discloses a similar game comprising a long object to be kept in the air by two sticks held in the player's hands and which is larger and heavier at the ends than in the middle. The long object is formed of generally light material surfaced with spongy adherent material preferably in the shape of a hyperboloid of revolution. Here also the long object is manipulated at its center of gravity and is beyond the skill of young players without adequate practice.